bigfatlump

Excellent work.

JordanC

I just posted a very detailed review on the first issue:

http://blog.getsacked.net/2007/12/20/the-bootroom-issue...t-sacked-review.aspx

rooneymagic88

It's a good idea, but will take a lot more blagging for an amateur fanzine to get interviews than it would for SI.

Lots of people on here claim to know real life players, maybe they could help?

You never know though. It could be worth a try. </BLOCKQUOTE>

Super Bladesman

Good job :thup:

playmaker

Thanks for the review - 7.5 out of 10 is a pretty good start for a baby fanzine! There are one or two points I would like to pick up, partucularly on the following statement:

"One primary job of any media endeavor is to provide the public with a centrist view of current events as well as editorial commentary that shows both positive and negative sides."

View From The Touchline 100% covers that statement in my opinion.

Negatives - not a big leap forward, wrong choice of features, nearly didn't buy it, the white skin, closing down bug and slow matches (written pre-patch), questioned decision to release beta, small mistakes have a big effect.

Positives - The complexity of such a game makes bugs inevitable, I like the game anyway.

The article was never intended as some kind of expose or to be Devil's Advocate. The forum has more than exhausted any new angle on criticism and I wanted to go somewhere new - to understand why this happens and rather frustratingly, why it will probably continue to happen. This forum is not a pleasant place to be right now and I didn't really want to continue that atmosphere into my first article for the fanzine.

The one thing that perhaps could be different was to have updated the article after the patch, but I didn't feel that it would change the main idea of the article and wanted to concentrate on getting enough material together.

As for Miles interview, it was a good read and to write it off as a puff piece is a bit unfair. I learnt a lot about Miles role in the company. We will hopefully work our way round the SI staff, so Ter has already answered questions on the reaction to the skin and hopefully we can speak to Paul Collyer somewhen and get some insight into the match engine.

We don't have to answer all the world's ills in one edition of the magazine!

Anyway, other than that thanks for the kind words about my writing. I haven't been hiding as such - I used to write for the original incarnation of the Bootroom and I have posted a lot of ideas on this forum in the past. Less so recently because those threads don't get the response they used to. The fanzine is a much better vehicle, so if anyone has any subjects they would like to be tackled in the Big Idea then drop us a line. Next month will be about the much needed expansion of team talks.

JordanC

I'm glad you took the time to respond to a lot of the feedback I offered in the review. This back-and-forth sharing of viewpoints is a positive way to further the magazine. Regardless of my exact opinions with some of the perspective, I'm totally in your corner as far as making sure this project reaches its highest potential.

I really had to address the journalistic issue in the Jacobsen piece because I was attempting to read the magazine using different views within the scene. In no way was the interview bad (I did like the questions about FM Live) but I believe when a lot of readers see "Q&A w/ Miles Jacobsen" they would expect at least one question about the supposed "bugs", patch releases & future fixes. I think that would have been more relevant to FM gamers than a few choices in the questions asked.

Failure to "ask the tough questions" as said within the media industry can sometimes come across, although unwarranted, as a form of appeasing or sucking up to the subject. Especially with the zine being hosted on SI Games with a sticky on top of the GQ forum, it could portray to many users as sactioned literature by the company. As with all media that's controlled by governments, it's typically not trusted very well by the general public.

You're completely unaffiliated and independent though. I know this. You know this. I'm just concerned that many people (mostly the critics of SI) can easily and wrongfully assume the zine as "propaganda". I'm typically on the "fanboy" end of the spectrum and I noticed the seemingly obvious omission of critical view (not asking Miles about bug issues). Imagine the thought in the minds of the countless "moaners"?

You've done a great job nonetheless and applaud all the effort. Like I said in the review, it's an absolute read for any FM gamer. I look forward to the next issue and will review it with the same depth and passion as I have this one.

betterspud

Thanks for the review and for your follow-up comments and I'm grateful that you've offered both criticism and praise where you think it is merited.

While I don't agree 100% with everything you said, it's invaluable to get a different viewpoint and I'm sure that we can take some of your concerns on board. With the exception of Pete, I don't believe any of us have had any prior experience with writing material for public consumption, so we're on a steep learning curve.

However, I'd like to clear up one thing, which is important to me at least. While you suggest that we need to take a 'journalistic' stance and be seen to be asking the tough questions of people like Miles, I completely disagree. The community is already populated by hundreds of regularly updated fansites and thousands of forum threads, with a depressing tendency towards the "This game is broken!" style reaction and everyone seems to feel they are entitled to answers and within their rights to demand patches/explanations/apologies/refunds. If people really want to slag off the game, then there are plenty of places to go. I'm quite happy that we can be something different.

I'd much rather concentrate on what's good about the game, it's community and the guys that develope and produce the game. While we don't intend to gloss over it's faults, what need is there to drag on about them? That's exactly why everyone shares the opinion that the majority of fan forums are not nice places to go. At times there will be a need to point out faults in this game, but when we do (and it didn't feel it was necessary in the very first issue) we'll aim to do it from the point of putting it into the context of the experience as a whole. I mean, lets face it, we're all playing (and taking about) this 'unplayable', 'bug-laden', 'disgrace' of a game and 99% of us are having a great time! If it's that bad, why does it outsell all others every year and continue to grow such a massive following? It ain't perfect, but it's still damn good!! Let's celebrate it and enjoy it...

JordanC

I absolutely agree with your approach to not beat a dead horse since many fansites/forums have already been flooded with the kneejerk reaction to the current match engine. I think it was well serviced in the "Domino Toppling" piece. Concentrating on other aspects of the FM experience such as the stories (although I'm not big into it personally) and the where are they now?/Herbert Chapman articles I consider to be a GREAT choice of material.

Interviews, on the other hand, tend to have the greatest impact when the magazine seems to act as a liason connecting the the reader's mind to the person in question. It's always best when preparing the interview to think "what would our audience like to know most about this person or his opinions on a certain issue?".

Not to plug my podcast or claim the best interview skills, but in my feature with WWFan, I didn't want the conversation to be just an audio version of his tactical guides. In order to maintain freshness, keep current and provide unique insight, I made sure we went into depth about these match engine issues. In preparation, I said to myself "what would listeners like to hear WWFan's thoughts on?" Being that it's discussed constantly on forums, failing to address this main topic seemed like a disservice. I believed I succeeded in presenting it in the best light with constructive ideas that isn't neccessarily addressed across the FM community.

A decent analogy is getting an interview with George W. Bush right after the Iraq war, never asking him any questions about it and spending more time discussing "boxers or briefs?". (I know it's an exaggerative example)

That's why I liked the FM Live questions because it's something fresh that a lot of people are itching and waiting in anticipation for its public release. My general theory I'm trying to express is to concentrate more in that direction in future interviews. You can still include basic "get to know" type material at the beginning and end, but dedicate the bulk to current affairs and an a "scoop" that can't be found elsewhere. That's what makes a must-read feature.

I come from a broadcasting background though so maybe I'm just a tad bit biased with my view based on my education and experience. I'm also a stubborn over-analytical psycho perfectionist! LOL If it seems like I'm a little harsh with this matter, I apologize. For a fanzine that rose out of nowhere apparently, it's a hundred times better than I would have expected previously...so don't feel disheartened with my criticism. I do it out of love! LOL

playmaker

In the end, our target audience is people who enjoy the game, or could enjoy the game with a little guidance. It's been nice to recapture some of the joy of playing FM and I genuinely believe that we can have more influence on the game with this approach. Not everyone will agree with that, but so far we have had a much better reaction than I ever anticipated.

eXistenZ

confused what this has to do with teh fanzine ?? </BLOCKQUOTE>

By looking on the numbers of treads on this site, i think there are more people that want a patch than a fanzine.